Good Spark Love David I have meant for a long time to share this story. Life tends to get busy and I seem to always be short on time. Now is no different. However, sometimes you just have to make time. In 2003 I was injured in a car wreck. That injury took me off the work force for almost a year. Then in 2006 I was injured again. This time it took me out of the work force permanently. I was so incredibly angry and depressed about not being able to work. I am a VERY high energy person and I LOVE to work. I needed an outlet. I desperately needed something I COULD do. I hadn’t picked up a camera in YEARS. So needing something to break up my days and feel useful, I turned back to photography. I built a small studio in my home and started taking a few odd photography jobs. ( remember this part of the story. It leads into something much bigger.) It took me some time, but I realized that there was a very good reason I was suppose to be at home. My daughter began having issues in school. My husband and I made the decision to pull all the 3 remaining kids at home out of public school and begin home schooling. BEST decision I ever made. Today all 3 are thriving, learning, and excelling better then I could have ever hoped for. Best of all we are so much closer as a family. However, the story gets better then this. 2 years ago, I began teaching a small class of home school kids all about photography. When I say small, I mean 8 kids. That number included 2 of my own children. We are now at the end of the second year. I have almost 30 students. WOW! Wait! The story gets better. My family has always been the quiet but steady volunteers. Collectively as a family we give about 300 to 400 volunteer hours each year. My husband served as a volunteer fire fighter for our rural community, I helped out in my daughters public school class room for 2 years tutoring 4th grade kids, With our children we have done Community clean up details, cemetery clean up details, organizing and helping out with fundraisers, and the list goes on and on. Remember I mentioned I have 30 students? These students are not only learning, but are VERY GOOD. The hardest part for a photographer is to get your name out there. Well, NOT FOR THIS GROUP OF KIDS. In November of this year, I received a call from our local Rescue Mission. They were planning their annual Christmas banquets where over 200 volunteers come together to serve families in need Christmas dinner and provide about 3000 children with Christmas gifts. They had contacted other photographers, but Christmas is a busy time for photographers. They desperately needed a photographer to donate their time to capture the event for their fundraiser advertising. They invited my students to come in and provide this service. My WONDERFUL student did a FANTASTIC job. So great in fact that we were invited back 2 more times since December. Word has now gotten out, and there is NO shortage of opportunities for my students to volunteer. Individually, my students are asked to create posters for fundraisers, church bulletins, ect. None of them EVER say no. What is so amazing is I literally have random people stop me out of the blue and say, “ Your that lady that teaches the Home School Photography Students aren’t you? Those kids are AMAZING!” You have to know this puts an instant smile on my face. Very little of what my students do, do they get paid for. I would say that about 99% is volunteer. We do have a few small fundraisers where the students take portraits of other home school students and sell the digital images with the copyright release to the parents for $7.00 each child. They also covered the Home School Prom, sold pictures and memory CD’s. Currently they are in the process of producing a 100% student made Home School Yearbook. When I say 100%, I mean they have taken all the photos, produced all the graphics, and designed all the pages. So far they have made all in all about $300.00 over the last 2 years. However, we had a local business give my class 3 rebuilt laptops so kids that couldn’t afford or didn’t have laptops could still learn. The same company gifted my class 500 copies of Photoshop for my kids to learn editing. It will be a LONG time before a student has to purchase Photoshop. We also had a local church offered us space for a classroom. A local Bank provided us with space in their lobby to display their work, and allowed the students to have a community voted on contest. The same bank for 2 years running has gifted the winner a $25.00 Visa gift card, and displays the winning photo on a wall they have designated just for my students. Many local businesses save empty ink cartridges that my students trade in for digital camera cards. The only thing I have left to pray for is that I find a way to purchase a few more DSLR cameras so the students don’t have to share so much. This too I know that God will help me to find a way. Backing up a little here, I know in my heart and soul that I never would have willingly given up working and a salary of $75,000.00 a year to go to no salary at all. God sometimes has to intervene. This has been the gift that has benefited not just me. Not that I like being injured. I live with an incredible amount of pain daily. But I am thankful that God made a way for me to be where I am today. I have the best group of students ANY instructor could ever hope for. My students have been given the opportunity to practice hands on what they love, at the same time of being able to give so much to their community. The community gets to know how wonderful and giving my students are. My kids have a stay at home mom. My family is closer then we ever have been before. And the community has shown SO MUCH support to my students. I am so incredibly blessed. I truly hope this inspires someone that is injured or is struggling. Sincerely: The Photography Teacher
Posted on: Sun, 04 May 2014 18:00:00 +0000
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